Marussia, the Formula One team 29.4% owned by Lloyds Banking Group, is in talks with potential investors to keep its wheels turning after making a £49m loss last year.

Andy Webb, the team's chief executive, said directors were "in active discussions with potential new investors in the business and also pursuing other sources of income including potential sponsorship".

He added that some of these discussions "were well advanced although not yet completed, so the outcome of each remains uncertain".

The Sheffield-based team joined F1 in 2010 and is likely to be valued at about £45m – about a quarter of F1's only listed team, Williams. While the Williams team has nine championships to its name, Marussia's drivers, Timo Glock and Charles Pic, have yet to score a single point.

A disastrous start in 2010, when Marussia finished last in the standings, hit the team's finances the following year. Turnover – mainly derived from sponsorship and prize money – declined 5% to £28.6m in the year to 31 December 2011.

However, the team's costs rose 11% to £70m, and in turn this widened its net loss by £11m.

Webb puts the increase in costs down to "significant investment in the team's personnel, infrastructure and factory".

The team finances its operations with debt from Lloyds Development Capital (LDC), the government-owned bank's private equity arm. Last year LDC handed the team £38.4m, bringing its total loans to £77.7m.

LDC invested in the team in 2009, and in November 2010 a controlling stake was sold to Marussia, the Russian sports car manufacturer after which the team is now named.

Marussia now controls 70.6% of the team with the remainder of the shares owned by LDC.

In 2011 the team's net debt came to £77m with £61m due after the end of this year. The increased investment last year is showing signs of paying off as Marussia now lies in its highest-ever position of 10th place.

If the team finish the year in this position the prize money from Formula One Management will increase around four-fold from the $10m received last year.